Please review! And thank you so much Radiant! I was going to leave this as a one-shot but had a few requests! Thank you guys!
"Natalya!"
She shuffled in her bed, shooting a zap of pain up her spine. Had training really been that hard yesterday?
"Natalya! It's time for training!"
Natalya pried open her eyes. Her back ached badly, especially when she moved. The skin seemed to be pulled oddly and made it sting.
Dimitri and Tolya stood next to her bed, already dressed and ready. The other students were gone and she looked around quickly.
"What time is it?"
"Seven-thirty." Dimitri said, looking worried. She knew why. They were supposed to report at seven-thirty. Furan had probably already realized they weren't there.
Natalya sat up quickly, making her wince "You guys need to go. Don't wait for me. Furan will have your head."
"We didn't know if you were going to wake up." Tolya said as she got up out of bed.
"I'll get changed. You guys better go." she said. But she winced at every movement, how was she supposed to train?
Both of the boys turned to leave. There was a shadow in the hallway of the propped open door and Natalya froze as did Tolya and Dimitri. A guard came into the room, eyes narrowed coldly. He looked like a military general in his uniform.
"You two!" he barked at the boys "Get downstairs, now. Don't expect to be let off for being late. Go."
Dimitri and Tolya nodded quickly and trotted out of the room. The guard looked at Natalya, who stared back, leaning forward slightly at the pain.
"I was just getting changed-"
"Sir Furan sent me up here to help you get medication on your back." the guard growled, cutting her off "He expects you down there by seven forty-five, so I suggest we get on with it."
Natalya nodded quickly and went into the bathroom. After she was changed, the man came in. He already had the bottle of liquid in his hand. She brought up the back of her shirt, up to the point where the lash marks were. The guard surveyed it with a slight smile. The skin was torn in several places and dry skin and blood still remained. Multiple bruises as well.
"He really got you good didn't he?" he muttered.
Natalya didn't say anything, but her eyes narrowed slightly, away from the guard's vision. He first got a cloth wet and scrubbed her back clean. It took all her control not to jerk away, as he wasn't particularly gentle. He then dripped the liquid onto each of the cuts. She winced as he pressed the cloth on each of the places, making sure it soaked in.
Then he pulled it off "There. You're done." he said gruffly "Get downstairs for training."
Natalya pulled her shirt down carefully and slid past him. She went out of the room and went down the series of stairs.
"Stand facing your partner!" came Furan's voice "Begin!"
Natalya quickened her pace and finally made it into the training arena. It was full of multiple kids sparring. Pietor watched them, eyes narrowed. She walked towards him, forcing herself to walk straight up.
"Sir." she said, trying not to wince.
Pietor didn't turn to look at her. His eyes flicked slightly.
"Valerian!" he yelled. One boy stopped and turned. Pietor beckoned him with one flick of his finger. The boy came over quickly.
"You're with her. Continue." he growled.
Valerian fell into a fighting stance and edged closed to her. He was a year older than her, but he knew not to toy with this girl. Natalya backtracked so they could be in the same line of students. He threw an arching punch at her torso, which she blocked with a swipe of her wrist. She ducked his next lash and hit his stomach. Valerian grunted and aimed a jab at her throat.
They continued like this for the next little while, constantly maintaining their best guard up as Pietor was only a few feet away.
Valerian's next punch she blocked easily, but he swung a quick foot and struck her in the back. Natalya gasped in pain as the healing scabs on her back were torn, but she tried not to let it show. Pietor kept one eye on her as their fight continued.
Valerian watched her cautiously and she went back into a fighting stance. They sparred for several more minutes, before Pietor called a switch. All the students rotated down one.
Natalya was now with a very large boy, who looked as if his face had been cut right down the middle with his light purple scar that ran across it. He glared at her as they waited for the order to go on fighting. Natalya stared back, eyes hard and challenging.
At Furan's word, he immediately started throwing blows. Natalya avoided his sloppy attacks easily. She could feel blood on her back and it was starting to sting ferociously. The boy hit her back with a flat palm to her chest. She felt on her lower back as she regained her balance. Her fingers were stained red. She looked up and her eyes widened as the boy's foot smacked her across the jaw. Natalya fell to the ground on her side, wincing badly and barely catching herself with her hands.
The boy looked down at her contemptuously. She glared back up and went to get to her feet. Her back was on fire now and he was mocking her. Pietor watched her, eyes narrowed, but to her surprise he didn't say anything like usual. His attention went to another student.
"You're gonna get the crap beat out of you here if that's the best you can do." the boy across from her snorted. Natalya glared again. She went forward in a rush of anger, leaving her vulnerable. He hit her chin back and jabbed on her back with a well-aimed hit. Natalya hissed through her teeth, but a second later the hard hit to her head sent her vision flashing and she fell to her knees, then her back. It burned badly. She heard someone shout an order, but couldn't make it out.
The last thing she saw was a blurry Pietor and a guard leaning over her. Then it all went black.
###
Natalya brought in a deep breath and opened her eyes. It took her a second to even remember where she was. There was dim lighting in the room and she realized she was in her dormitory in her bed. After a moment, she slowly tried to sit up.
Her back didn't ache nearly as badly and as she moved, she realized her whole back was wrapped up in bandages. They stretched around her stomach and up over her chest. Natalya looked around, seeing the once again empty beds. That meant it wasn't night yet and they were still training. She laid back down, and curled her toes a bit in anxiety. Furan would probably beat her tomorrow for missing the training session. Although it was his fault in the first place.
She could hear him still shouting at the trainees down there. His yelling voice carried like the wind through any wall. For a moment, she felt relieved she was missing it, but then she thought of Dimitri and Tolya and immediately felt guilty.
Either way, she closed her eyes, and tried to get some more sleep.
###
Natalya awoke a few hours later at the sound of thundering feet. She tilted her head to look up. The other students in her dormitory were coming back in, looking exhausted as they did by the end of most days. She received quite a few glares from some of them. Dimitri and Tolya were among the last to walk in and they came over to her.
"What happened?" Dimitri asked, sitting down on the side of her bed. Natalya sat up, stiffly because of her back.
"All we saw was Furan carrying you off to the medical bay." Tolya said "You looked like you were bleeding pretty badly."
"I guess I was." Natalya said, reaching a hand back to press on her back "Valerian tore of some of the scabs."
Dimitri winced for her "Ow."
"Did Furan seem angry?" she asked quietly. Dimitri glanced at Tolya, then back at her.
"All he said was to tell you he expected you down there tomorrow on time and ready to train or that you'd answer to him." Dimitri said.
Natalya looked at him "Really?"
They nodded.
Natalya was silent for a second, then she waved them away "You guys are exhausted. You should get changed and get ready for bed. I'm fine."
"You sure?" Dimitri asked and she nodded.
The two of them stood up and went over to get their clothes.
Natalya laid back down, listening to the other children in silence. She closed her eyes. One day.
She had promised herself.
One day she would break out of here. She knew she would. She had too. The night was coming. The three of them had to do it together.
Thanks for reading! Remember to go and check out The Russian Convit too! It's my longest and best story yet! Please Review!
